![]() ![]() The water was found in greater concentrations on the shadowed sides of craters and mountains, similar to the way skiers on Earth know the slopes receiving less direct sun retain snow longer. Instead of determining the absolute quantity of water in the region, the researchers compared the data obtained around the Moon’s South Pole to a relatively dry reference region near the Moon’s equator to see how its abundance changes. The Moon’s water is present in the soil and might be found as ice crystals, or as water molecules chemically bound to other materials. Other missions observing wide areas of the lunar surface have studied different wavelengths of light, which can’t distinguish water from similar molecules, such as hydroxyl. This current finding, along with two previous SOFIA results about the amount and distribution of water on the Moon’s sunlit surface, tracks a unique light signature of water. Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio/Ernie Wright Although the right side of the region is drier overall, water can still be seen tracing the insides of craters in light blue. ![]() The inner wall on the crater’s upper half is clearly delineated in dark blue, indicating a greater presence of water on this shady surface. Halfway down the left side of the region is Moretus Crater. Near the top left of the studied region, a ridge is visible in dark blue, where the water is particularly concentrated on the shady side of a steep lunar feature. Darker blue indicates a higher concentration of water. The flat-topped lunar mountain will be a region of emphasis in the next paper from the team that led the current study of SOFIA data.Ī visualization of SOFIA data measuring a signal or “light signature” of water overlaid on a visualization of the Moon as it appeared at the time of the observations in February 2022. In late 2024, NASA’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) will land in the region studied by SOFIA, atop Mons Mouton, to conduct the first resource mapping mission beyond Earth. “When looking at the water data, we can actually see crater rims, we see the individual mountains, and we can even see differences between the day and night sides of the mountains, thanks to the higher concentration of water in these places,” said Bill Reach, director of the SOFIA Science Center at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley and lead author on the study, which was presented at the 2023 Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. ![]() In this data visualization, SOFIA’s lunar water observations are indicated using color, with blue representing areas of higher water signal, and brown less. The new map covers about one-quarter of the Earth-facing side of the lunar surface below 60 degrees latitude and extends to the Moon’s South Pole. Given the large region covered, the researchers could easily identify how water relates to surface features on the Moon, staying away from sunlight and favoring cold areas.Ī new study using the now-retired Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) has pieced together the first detailed, wide-area map of water distribution on the Moon. ![]() The study was published in The Planetary Science Journal on March 15, 2023. With clear, identifiable lunar features marked out by the water data, the research provides hints about how water may be moving across the Moon’s surface, particularly near its South Pole - an important area for space exploration. SOFIA was a joint project of NASA and the German Space Agency at DLR. Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio/Ernie WrightĪ new study using the now-retired Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) has pieced together the first detailed, wide-area map of water distribution on the Moon. The region of the SOFIA observations is shown in shades of blue and brown. A still image of the full disk of the Moon as it appeared on February 17, 2022. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |